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Cheese University (VII): Selles sur Cher

Selles sur Cher

In 1970, the Selles sur Cher obtained its own Appellation d’Origine Controlée and that was the moment when the village of the same name was put on the map. The next bigger city is Blois which you might not know either, Orléans is not far, and for all of you who aren’t familiar with French geography at all, let’s say: Selles-sur-Cher is to be found 200 kilometres south-southwest of Paris, it’s a two-and-a-half hours drive from the capital, roughly. Concerning the fabulous French goat cheeses, there aren’t many that can compete with

Selles sur Cher

In written documents, it was first mentioned in 1887 but it is, of course, much older. Nowadays, it is produced in 13 cantons of the Loir-et-Cher-departement, translate canton with parish. One piece weighs 150 grams, we’re talking about thick discs or small cylinders of 9 by 2.5 to 3 centimetres. The texture is creamy and extremely charming, it’s a rich yet very fine cheese made of unpasteurized full-fat goat’s milk. During the making, the pieces are salted and powdered with charcoal before ripening for 10 days or so. The pâte has a certain acidity. The cheese smells and tastes of caprine, the whole thing is a marvel on a piece of baguette and one of my real favourites.

There’s only 36 producers (Selles sur Cher counts 4700 souls) and they stand in for around 700 tons of cheese per year, that’s not a lot. I haven’t found an official website either which means that Selles sur Cher, the cheese and its craftsmen, make a very exclusive, stubborn little circle. The village, by the way, is less picturesque than you might think. I’ve been there and was a bit disappointed. But that doesn’t concern the cheese. It’s brilliant, and here’s another testimonial on Cheese Chatter, a website for cheese-lovers I highly recommend.

What would you drink with it? I wished that our friend Alain (who used to comment the first cheese seminars here) told us. I’d suggest to have a white Loire wine with it, a classic Saumur maybe, a Cheverny, a Sancerre or alike.